Expect rain, snow, icing and extreme cold this weekend

DEM Blogger

January 18, 2019

Updated 3:45pm, Friday, January 18

A Winter Weather Advisory will go into effect for Lexington at 4pm on Saturday, January 19, 2019.

Rain will transition to snow by Saturday evening. Total snow accumulations of 1 to 3 inches Saturday night. Winds gusts of 35 to 45 mph.

Southern Indiana and Central Kentucky. The heaviest forecast amounts are along and north of I-64, but bands of heavier snow can form Saturday evening anywhere across the region, bringing higher amounts.

Snow will begin across southern Indiana in the 4 to 7 PM EST time frame Saturday. The transition line will make it to the I-65 corridor in Kentucky anywhere from 8 to 11 PM EST and then to the I-75 corridor anywhere from 11 PM to 2 AM EST early Sunday morning.

Gusty winds with the snowfall Saturday evening and early overnight will make for reduced visibilities and hazardous driving conditions. In addition, wind chill
factors will drop into the single digits for most locations by daybreak Sunday.

A Winter Weather Advisory for snow means periods of snow will cause primarily travel difficulties. Expect snow covered roads and limited visibilities, and use caution while driving.

Listen to NOAA Weather Radio or your local media for the latest updates on this situation.

A potent cold front and upper-level jet stream will combine to produce a wild weekend of weather. Rain will come in early Saturday morning…and increase in intensity during the day. Expect rainfall amounts of 1 to 2 inches with southern Kentucky likely seeing the higher amounts. This rainfall will cause streams and creeks to rise along with rivers, especially the Green River and Rough Rivers.

On Saturday evening….temperatures will plummet some 20 to 30 degrees as an arctic cold front plows through. There will be a transition from rain to snow around sunset to evening hours and then very strong northwesterly winds for the overnight hours. Expect winds of 20 to 30 mph Saturday night dropping wind chills to single digits Sunday morning. Wind chills will be near zero Monday morning.

Snowfall accumulations of 1 to 3-inch snowfall are likely across southern Indiana and areas of central Kentucky…mainly along and north of I-64 Saturday night into early Sunday morning. Over the rest of central Kentucky, a quick dusting is possible.

Try to avoid going outdoors overnight Saturday through early Sunday morning due to bitterly cold temperatures. There is a good chance that any wet roads will become slick as the cold air blasts into the region, with icy roads possible through Sunday morning.

Stay up to date of the latest forecasts as details are likely to change leading up to the event.